


'Cause Things Got Better

by lovethatwewerein



Category: Glee
Genre: Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-27
Updated: 2020-12-27
Packaged: 2021-03-10 21:01:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,053
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28363602
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lovethatwewerein/pseuds/lovethatwewerein
Summary: He meets Tina Cohen Chang for the first time when she’s still making the shift from her goth phase into whatever it is she has going on now. She’s at the Lima Bean, waiting for a latte, and he’s behind her, attempting to figure out if the barista is gay or bi or just really likes pastels - he suspects the former but who knows.
Relationships: Blaine Anderson/Sebastian Smythe, Blaine Anderson/Tina Cohen chang/Sebastian smythe, Blaine Anderson/Tina Cohen-Chang, Tina Cohen-Chang/Sebastian Smythe
Comments: 5
Kudos: 20





	'Cause Things Got Better

**Author's Note:**

> Title from 'Here's To Us' By Halestorm
> 
> This is mainly for siriusdamage because she's the only reason this ever got finished.

He meets Tina Cohen Chang for the first time when she’s still making the shift from her goth phase into whatever it is she has going on now. She’s at the Lima Bean, waiting for a latte, and he’s behind her, attempting to figure out if the barista is gay or bi or just really likes pastels - he suspects the former but who knows. 

She’s leaving by the time he finds out - apparently he’s straight - but someone bumps into her on their way through the door and her coffee goes flying. He doesn’t help her out but, when she’s asking for a mop to help the staff clean up the spill, he covertly asks for a replacement, sending the barista a wink just because he can. 

He hands it to her as he walks past, nodding subtly before continuing on his merry way. He’d promised Jeff one good samaritan act a week and, it being a Friday, he’s running low on time. Hopefully, this will count to his best friend and he’ll be free of that duty until Monday morning. 

*

The second time they meet is, unsurprisingly, at the Lima Bean. She’s with a black-haired boy this time, waving her arms about frantically to explain a point and, while he can’t be too sure, he thinks she recognises him when he walks through the door, unwrapping the scarf from around his neck. 

He gets in line and she stands, throwing her coffee in the bin as she passes it. He expects her to walk out of the shop, hand in hand with who he can only assume to be her boyfriend, but she doesn’t. Instead, she joins the line behind him, humming softly. 

“You know I saw you throw your drink in the bin, right?” he says, turning around with a raised eyebrow. “What do you want?” 

She hesitates, scrunching her nose up. “I never got to thank you for buying me a second coffee that day,” she explains, shifting from foot to foot.

“Don’t worry about it,” he faces the front of the queue again. The barista’s hair is a boring brown compared to the yellows and blues of the one he saw in the summer. He kind of hates it. The pop of colour made things slightly more interesting in Ohio. “It’s not like I need the money.”

“Yeah, well,” she continues, tapping him on the shoulder until he’s looking at her again. “I feel like I owe you so here.” 

She thrusts her hand forward, passing him a slip of paper. He’s been given enough phone numbers to recognise one immediately and, though he could’ve been sure the other guy was her boyfriend, that was purely based on intuition. 

“Thanks,” he nods, tucking it into his blazer pocket. The lady in front of him trying to wrestle her child back into his pushchair pushes her way out of the line. He steps forward to the counter. “Do you want anything?” 

Tina bites her lip before shaking her head. “No. That was all. See you around.” 

She spins on her heel, the boy she’s with staring at him with interest passing her her coat when she approaches him. When she’s out of sight and his coffee is in his hand, he pulls her number back out of his pocket. 

_ Tina Cohen-Chang :) _

He shakes his head, fighting a chuckle. There’s just something about hand-drawn emoticons that will always amuse him. 

*

He finds out about Blaine Anderson a week later, the boy leaning against the door frame as they run through Uptown Girl. He smiles at him and, without thinking, Sebastian pulls him into the song, showing him the routine with a grin. When it’s over, all of the Warblers swarming around the other boy, he wonders exactly who Blaine Anderson is. 

“Are you a freshman?” 

“Do I _ look _ like a freshman?” He smiles when Blaine dips his chin, a blush building from his neck to the tips of his ears. 

They go to the dining room and he asks only half of the questions he has. He’s yet to message Tina, her number pinned to the bulletin board at his desk, but Blaine knows her. It would probably be smart to know what he’d be getting into. 

“So you and Tina?” 

“What about me and Tina?” Blaine asks, his nose scrunching. “There is no me and Tina.” 

“You aren’t dating?” 

Blaine laughs, loud and clear. “God no. She’s my best friend. I’m gay.” 

Sebastian smiles, ignoring the lingering question of how he hadn’t known that. Ohio has clearly broken him more than he first thought. “That’s good to know, Blaine.” 

“Tina has a boyfriend,” Blaine tells him, a flash of warning in his hazel eyes before it’s gone, replaced with the bright shine from before. “And so do I.” 

“Doesn’t bother me.” 

“We’re both very happy,” Blaine affirms, although it isn’t as sure as it could be. As confident as it should be. He considers that there are more cracks than Blaine’s willing to admit to, ones he could slip through with time. “So thank you, but no.”

“Shame,” he says, just because an ass like that is clearly being wasted if Blaine’s still blushing like a virgin. “Well, the offer’s always there.” 

The conversation ends when Blaine’s phone rings, the contact photo that of another boy with his arms wrapped around him. He doesn’t get a close look but he isn’t impressed with what he does see. Maybe slipping through the cracks will be easier than he originally thought.

*

He hesitates just seconds before he calls, his hand shaking for a moment as he stares at the digits. He has half an hour until Jeff returns from soccer practice, enough time to put this on the backburner and just find someone else. But the crawford girls don’t like him and Jeff’s sister is seven years old so, really, it’s his only option. 

“Who is this?” Tina asks after the fifth ring, a guarded voice that reminds him of his mom when he was eight years old and she was seeing some college guy when his dad was out of town, 

“Sebastian,” he says, locking the door quickly. The situation is already bad enough, he doesn’t need someone to find out about it. “Sebastian Smythe.” 

“Right. The coffee guy,” he hears the snap of her fingers, the brush of her hair against the speaker of the phone. “What do you want?” 

He wonders how much she knows, whether Blaine’s told her about their meeting at Dalton or if she’s still in the dark. He doubts it, seeing as she had barely known who he was, but he wishes he had - that he was worth at least a mention. 

“What are you doing Friday night?” 

“Nothing,” she tells him, dragging out the vowels. “Why?” 

He huffs, fingers curling at the nape of his own neck. There’s chattering from outside the door, loud and distant. “I kind of need a date for a business dinner.” 

“Isn’t there, you know, anyone else you could ask?” He can sense the hint of laughter paired with the slightest bit of disbelief. 

He bites the inside of his cheek, regretting every decision that led to this moment. Why did he have to make every girl he’s ever known cry? “Look, can you do it or not?” 

There’s silence, nothing but Tina’s breathing through the phone. He thinks that she’s going to turn him down, claim something about loyalty and responsibility. “What’s the dress code?”

*

He’s never been completely enamoured with the female body, all the squishy bits and the incredible amount of hair they all seem to have that just gets in the way. Even with that, he can tell as soon as Tina steps out of her house that she’s dressed to impress. Her dress is lilac, maybe violet, and her hair curls slightly at the bottom, the right side clipped backwards. 

“Thank you for doing this,” he whispers as they walk into the hall his father’s boss had booked for the evening, her arm twisted through his. “You look great.” 

“I know,” she responds, grinning up at him in the dim light. Her brown eyes might be sparkling or maybe they’re blue - he can’t be sure - but he’s grateful that she’s entertaining to be around. “So, what’s the deal with this dinner then?” 

He sighs, leading her through the long corridors. There’s the clicking of marble beneath their feet, obscenely loud compared to the silence. “It’s mainly lawyers, a few politicians. Maybe some deans of ivy leagues.” 

“You’re kidding?” 

“I wish I was kidding,” he shakes his head, pressing the button as they step into the elevator. “It’s just a lot of sucking up to people in high places. And, when you come from a family like mine, they expect you to have it all sorted by the time you’re our age.” 

“You seem to do just fine at having it all sorted.” 

“If we ignore the being gay thing,” he says, nudging her towards a door on their left. “And the divorced parents thing. And the sleeping around thing.” 

“So, if you ignore everything that makes you interesting?” It’s not really a question, more of a judgemental statement stacked under layers of politeness. He laughs, stopping outside of a door. There’s faint instrumental music reaching through the door. “Pretty much.” 

*

As it turns out, Tina was the perfect choice. She’s smart, engaging and funny - some of those things he’s sure were cultivated by her parents - and, if anyone is left unimpressed by him, their opinions turn around. He knows that, were he into girls, she’d be his type (next to girls with no brains in their heads and a too-high sex drive). Okay, so maybe she’d be his type to settle down with, instead. 

“Sebastian,” his father calls from a few feet away, beckoning him closer. They haven’t had much of a chance to talk, each bombarded by people higher up the food chain. “How come this is the first I’m hearing of Tina?” 

“She…” he pauses, wondering how best to phrase it. It’s not that his father will hate how Tina had ended up as his date tonight, he’s just not sure he wants to tell it. “She goes to another school. McKinley - in Lima.” 

HIs father nods slowly, eyes searching out Tina across the room. “She’s pretty. Smart, too, from what I’ve heard.” 

“Yeah,” he agrees, waiting for it all to end. He chances a glance at his father’s glass of wine. He could probably get his own if he asked. “She’d be the perfect choice if I was into that.” 

“You need to think about the way you phrase things, Sebastian,” his father warns before walking towards his boss. Rolling his eyes, Sebastian snatches a glass of wine off a tray as it passes and returns to Tina’s side. 

The night passes, full of compliments and the steady diffusion of alcohol into his veins. As much as he likes Tina, the night isn’t going to end the way he would normally want it to. He has options, could go to Scandals when this is over or find one of the boys at Dalton willing to get him off, but it seems disrespectful in ways he can’t fully comprehend. 

He drops Tina off outside her house, asking the taxi driver to wait for his return as he walks her to her door. His buzz is slowly wearing off, the bite from the air raising goosebumps on his arms. Tina shivers and he’s only partly grateful that she’s home and he won’t have any reason to give her his blazer jacket. 

“I actually had a lot of fun tonight,” she tells him, rocking back and forth on her heels. “So thanks for the invite.” 

“No problem,” he nods, waving her goodbye as he turns back towards the taxi. He’s almost there when the click of her heels hurries along behind him, her small hand grabbing his bicep. “Tina, wha-” 

She places a gentle kiss on his cheek, smiling up at him before retreating. He doesn’t lift a hand to his cheek. He doesn’t. 

*

“You can score Blaine and I fake I.Ds, right?” Tina asks as soon as he answers the phone. 

“I know a guy,” he says, flipping to the next page in his textbook. He doesn’t know where Jeff is but suspects he’s with Nick. “What do you need them for?” 

She sighs, long and low like it’s a challenge not to be irritated. “Kurt and Blaine have been fighting a lot since I went to that business dinner with you. Kurt thinks I’m betraying the New Directions or something like that.” 

“Well, are you?” 

“No,” she says, exasperated. “They’re my team and I owed you a favour. But it’s exhausting either way, so can you get us those I.Ds or not?” 

“For you and Blaine, right? No Mike?” 

“No Mike,” she confirms and he highlights a couple of sentences. “We’re having our own problems. I don’t want to talk about it.” 

“Alright,” he agrees, pulling up Travis’ number already. “Meet me outside Scandals tomorrow night.” 

“You’re a lifesaver.” 

*

He’s never been entirely sure what the deal between Blaine and Tina is. Sometimes they seem too cosy to be just friends and sometimes they seem like they’ll never be more than friends. What he does know for certain is that they both tend to carry the weight of the world on their shoulders, taking everything thrown at them until their will snaps into a million tiny pieces. He doesn’t get it himself, too quick to speak his mind, but they deserve a break. 

“Are you glad you came, killer?” 

Blaine nods, grinning up at him. His hair is slowly loosening from the gel he keeps it plastered in, curling at his forehead. His bowtie is undone, the top button of his shirt open to reveal more of his neck. He’s carefree and a bit tipsy and, really, for someone that normally looks amazing, he’s all sorts of beautiful as well. 

“What about you?” he asks Tina, watching as she slowly sips her drink. “Having fun?” 

She blinks, her eyes focusing on him instead of the wooden top of the bar. “Yeah. I am.” 

“You don’t sound like you are.” 

“I just… life is kind of weird right now.” 

“When is it not weird at that public school of yours?” 

She chuckles, dragging her finger around the rim of her glass. “Fair point.” 

He stares at her for a moment, watching as she goes from staring at him to looking longingly at Blaine on the dancefloor. “He’s pretty, isn’t he?” 

“You have no idea,” she tells him, draining the last of her drink. “I want to dance.” 

“Come on then.” 

*

Maybe he should’ve stopped them at just a couple of drinks, given them water instead of whatever drink they wanted. It hadn’t been an issue in the past, buying someone a drink to get them into his bed was a normal routine, but they were different - they were taken and Blaine was the responsible type and, well, he was gay and Tina was a girl. 

“You’re really funny,” Blaine laughs as Tina rests her head against his shoulder. “Have I ever told you that?” 

He kind of hates that he wants to be more responsible than usual because he cares about them both. “And you’re pretty drunk, killer.” 

“Doesn’t matter,” Blaine shakes his head, leaning back against the headrest. His hand is resting on Tina’s thigh and Sebastian pretends that he hasn’t noticed. “It’s the truth.” 

“It is.” 

“Sure, it is.” 

“You know, this is the most fun I’ve had in months,” Blaine whispers, his eyes darting around like anyone is going to hear them. “I want to live there and make art and help people.” 

“We should,” Tina says, eyes widening. “The three of us should just live there and forget about show choir and boyfriends and, especially, Rachel Berry.” 

“Great idea!” 

“You’re both way too drunk for this,” he laughs, pushing Tina’s head off his shoulder as they pull up outside Blaine’s house. All the lights are off but he can’t figure out whether it’s because everyone’s asleep or because his parents aren’t home. It doesn’t really matter. “Off you go.” 

They stumble up the driveway, holding onto one another for support, both laughing loudly. He leans against the door of the car, watching until they enter Blaine’s house, Tina waving at him wildly just before the door closes. 

When he receives a message ten minutes later that vaguely reads as got home safe, he snorts into his collar, ignoring the bemused look he gets from the driver. 

*

He can’t claim to be entirely shocked when Blaine kisses him, sinking into it with more finesse than he expected from someone that claims to have only had experience with Kurt Hummel. He’d heard about the break-up from everything from show choir blogs to the Warblers themselves but he hadn’t known the reasons behind it. It’s easy enough to go with it when Blaine knocks on his door and they stumble onto his bed. 

“Holy shit,” Jeff mumbles when he walks into the room after dinner, notebooks he knows are either Nick or David’s. “What happened?” 

“What does it look like? We had a picnic and then napped.”

“Please tell me that’s exactly what happened because it might be the only thing I could live with.” 

“That’s not what happened and you know it.” 

“Gross,” Jeff deadpans, placing the books carefully on his desk. Blaine’s head pokes out from under Sebastian’s blanket, burying himself back under it as soon as he spots Jeff on the other side of the room. “I’ll leave you two to talk.” 

“Is he gone?” Blaine mumbles eventually, his face still smushed into the cushion. “Please tell me he’s gone.” 

“He’s gone,” Sebastian assures him, reaching down the side of the bed for his t-shirt. “He’s been gone for about five minutes.” 

He hands Blaine his clothes, fighting the urge to watch as he puts them back on at Blaine’s request. When they’re dressed, Blaine with his legs crossed, still sitting on the bed and Sebastian at his desk chair, he waits for the other boy to talk first. 

“About this afternoon,” Blaine begins, picking at a loose thread beside his knee. “I suppose a thank you would be weird.” 

“Kind of.” 

“Well, it’s all I can come up with.” 

“I give you the best sex of your short life so far and you say ‘thank you’,” he jokes, biting his lip. “Bit odd but I’ll take it.” 

“Can’t you be serious for a moment?”

“No, not when I finally got you into my bed,” Blaine blushes and it’s almost tempting to throw the conversation away, reach out and distract each of them for the short time they have before Blaine has to leave. “So what happened, killer?” 

He hesitates, that small wary smile that comes from embarrassment appearing. It makes sense, in some strange way, that now is the time for anxiety, having to be honest about why he’s here with a boy he barely knows when he was so committed to his boyfriend just a week ago. But they both need answers before anything else can happen. 

“Kurt is… McKinley is this school where everyone is at odds constantly - for solos and partners, everything really. It’s a battleground and Kurt’s usually at the centre of it. He wants to be seen and, when I’m there, he’s not and it caused this rift between us for so long.”

“You shouldn’t have to pretend you’re worse than you are.”

“I’m not,” Blaine shakes his head, titling his head up to the ceiling. “I was willing to let it slide at first. I was the new guy, which was fine. But it’s been two months and Finn still doesn’t respect me. Kurt still gets jealous when I hang out with Tina or Mike. I felt like I was being suffocated.”

“”So you broke up with him.”

“I didn’t,” he says, gazing across at Sebastian. His brow crinkles in confusion. “He started flirting with some guy at the music shop. They were talking for two days. About what life would be like when they both went to New York, how great certain things were. How great  _ they  _ were. When I found out and accused Kurt of cheating on me, he broke up with me.”

“That’s dumb.”

Blaine laughs lightly, his limbs loosening from where he’d folded in on himself as he spoke. “It’s the truth. That’s what happened.”

“Well I am going to thank someone, not Kurt Hummel, every day for him being dumb enough not to see your worth.”

He grins, shifting his chair closer to the bed. Blaine leans forward, letting himself be tempted by the promise of something more interesting than talking. 

*

Tina finds out about them in the interim between friends with benefits and something worth a lot more. They’re at the Lima Bean studying, him for american history and Blaine for biology. It wasn’t difficult to figure out early on that it was the only place they could study, if they were in his dorm they got distracted quickly and the Dalton library didn’t exactly offer coffee. 

She’s there alone, fabric swatches bundled in her hands as she attempts to balance them with her coffee and Blaine’s quick to notice her, jumping out of his seat and grabbing as much as he can. 

“Oh, hi,” she says when Blaine leads them towards where he’s still sitting. “I didn’t realise you two were here.” 

“Study date,” he nods to the textbooks he stacked at the side of the table while Blaine was gone. 

“Study date?”

“Just studying, Tina,” Blaine tells her, rolling his eyes when he catches Sebastian wink at her. It’s fun to get on his nerves on occasion. “I’ve got that test coming up.” 

She laughs, sipping her coffee with a raised eyebrow. “Whatever you say, dear.” 

*

The New Directions are good, really good, at Sectionals. There’s no Rachel Berry, courtesy of a very strange blackmail plan he’d left on Thad’s desk with clear instructions to do whatever it takes to take her out. The flirting he’d attempted hadn’t been on there but she wasn’t performing and that’s what mattered. 

Blaine’s impressive, is always impressive, but so is Tina. It’s nice for them to highlight her for a change, push her forward and into the spotlight like she deserves, and he has fun watching them sing along to Jackson hits. There’s a vague threat in there somewhere, one that tells him they may have lost anyway, but he can’t bring himself to be angry when they smile at him after being crowned the winners. 

*

“We’re having an after-party at my house,” Blaine approaches him as he’s walking towards his car. He’s still wearing his performance outfit, but the blazer is gone and his tie is wonky. “I wanted to see if you’d join us.” 

“Isn’t Kurt going to be there?”

Blaine leans against the side of his car, hip cocked just slightly to the left. “I don’t think he and Rachel are planning to stay very long. Some NYADA prep sleepover thing they planned.” 

“Does it mean I’ll get to see your bedroom?” 

“You’re the worst,” he snorts, twirling Sebastian’s tie between his fingers. “But if you play your cards right…”

“I’ll be there.”

“Can’t wait,” he lets Blaine write his address in his phone, telling him to be there anytime after nine. He’s got almost two hours then and, if he tries his hardest (with a little bit of reckless driving) he’ll get there in good time. Blaine leaves him with a kiss on the cheek and the promise of more. 

*

The party is in full swing when he arrives, most of the New Directions already drunk or tipsy. Tina is sitting on Blaine’s lap, her head resting on his shoulder, lifting it with a bright smile after spotting him. He watches her struggle to untangle herself from the mess of limbs that she and Blaine had become, holding back a laugh.

“You made it,” she yells in his ear, grabbing him by the elbow to pull him away from the crowd. He sees a lot of people he doesn’t recognise, an asian boy, a kid in a wheelchair, a  _ stripper? _ but most of them ignore him, caught up in their own conversations. “What do you want to drink?”

“Surprise me.”

She nods, grinning widely. He’s about to watch her carefully, make sure she doesn’t try to poison him with too much vodka or something equally outlandish, but he’s quickly caught between the counter and Blaine’s body. Tina rolls her eyes at them. 

“Hi.”

“Hello to you too,” he greets, spinning around to face Blaine. Tina hands him his drink over the top of Blaine’s head. She doesn’t leave, like he expects her to, just starts mixing another drink. “I didn’t see Hummel on my way in.”

“He made the executive decision not to show,” Tina responds, lifting herself onto one of the counters with very little grace. “If you ask me, he just didn’t want to watch you two be all touchy-feely.” 

“Is that what we are? Touchy-feely?”

“Well, Blaine is,” she gestures to where Blaine is still wrapped around Sebastian’s body like a koala. “And everyone here knows it - Kurt included.” 

“Good to know.” 

They stay in the kitchen for a long time, Tina and Blaine filling him in on who’s who. He knows some of them, knows Mike and Hudson and he thinks he recognises Fabray from an important business dinner once upon a time. Most of their names don’t stick, not the supposed rebel or the teen stripper, but they’re all easy enough to tell apart and it’s not like he’ll ever have to address them by name. 

It’s not until Tina calls for a game of spin the bottle, a strange glint in her eyes that tells him she’s planning something, that they join everyone in the living room. Blaine is still glued to his side, slowly sipping a glass of water, and Tina sits on the opposite side of the circle next to the teen stripper. He takes note of everyone he would prefer to avoid which, unsurprisingly, is most of them but he can make it work. If Tina hasn’t already figured something out. 

Nothing interesting happens, even with a lot of apparent exes making out, until Puckerman’s turn, the bottle slowing to a halt pointing at Mike. It’s awkward and sloppy and he’s forced to wonder if the guy has ever kissed anyone before. In some weird way, he feels sorry for Mike. Who’d have thought?

Blaine’s spin lands on Fabray and it’s a little too eagerly received from both of them. She’s clearly holding onto the little bit of her that’s straight with an iron grip and, really, if he were her, he’d think Blaine Anderson was a great choice for confirming that belief. Blaine is obviously having fun and he settles the spikes of jealousy in his stomach with a glance at Tina. She’s trying to silence her laughter, shoulders shaking the tiniest bit, and it calms him. 

He leans forward, sending the bottle spinning. It skips over Blaine several times before it begins to lose momentum, drifting to a stop in front of Tina and he’s sure he’s the only one who saw her move her leg just enough that the tip of her shoe caught the lid of it. 

Tina comes to him, both of them with the knowledge that Blaine might end up lying on the floor if he moves too far away. He’s just as aware of how pretty she is now as he was when she dressed up a couple of months ago and it’s not the first time he’s wanted to kiss her either. Just to see what it would be like. 

It doesn’t disappoint, not nearly as intense as Blaine and Fabray’s, but Tina’s a good kisser, possibly great if they weren’t both drunk and his pseudo- whatever Blaine is- wasn’t clinging to his side. Someone pulls Tina away in the end, fingers wrapped around her elbow and tugging her gently back towards her seat. Blaine rests his head on Sebastian’s shoulder as soon as he’s sitting properly against the arm of the couch behind him and he pretends not to notice the flush crawling up the other boy’s cheeks. 

The party winds down after that, Hummel knocking on the door to collect Hudson and Evans. Puckerman and Jones catch a ride with Fabray and Mike apparently only lives a few streets away so he takes his leave once everyone except he, Blaine and Tina have cleared out. 

“I set the guest room up for you, T,” Blaine says, stumbling up the staircase with a laugh. Tina follows him, careful to grip the banister tightly until they’re up on the landing, Sebastian trailing after them. “And I left a change of clothes in there too.”

She yawns, grabbing his shoulder for balance. “Thanks, Blaine.” 

He watches as Blaine pushes a door to the left open, revealing a simple bedroom. Grey and white walls. Teal bedding. There’s a jumper and sweats folded near the pillows and Tina makes quick work of falling onto the bed, hair fanning out around her head. He chuckles as Blaine joins her, face buried in the pillows. 

“Should I just leave you two to it then?” 

“I’ll be there in a minute,” Blaine grumbles, lifting his head to look Sebastian in the eye. “My bedroom is… two doors down.”

He nods, shaking his head at Tina as she starts to snore lightly. Finding Blaine’s room is easy and it’s so obviously his that he probably could’ve guessed without the instructions. There’s a box of comic books tucked away near his desk, framed photos of the new directions and warblers on the walls. There’s a guitar, just like there was a piano downstairs, and he spots three binders labelled ‘sheet music’ on the shelves. 

There isn’t much he can do without Blaine in the room so he takes a book down from the shelf. He doesn’t really get it, the plot or the characters, but it stops him from dozing off. Except Blaine doesn’t come back within ten minutes, hasn’t even made a sound in half an hour. 

Pushing the door to the guest bedroom open, he spots Blaine and Tina asleep over the comforter, curled into one another. Disappointed as he is, they had both drunk a lot in celebration of their win, so it makes sense that this would happen. Shaking his head, he presses the door shut carefully, retreating to Blaine’s bedroom to get some sleep himself. 

*

Waking up, he’s confused for a split second. Not because he doesn’t know where he is - it’s a situation he’s found himself in often enough that it doesn’t shock him anymore - but there usually isn’t anyone beside him when the sun is shining. If there is, he’s quick to leave. Then, he spots the binders, the guitar, the photo of Blaine with last year’s council and he settles. 

“Would you stop moving?” Blaine grumbles in his ear, an arm squeezing around his waist. It’s domestic, scary in a way he hadn’t quite anticipated being with Blaine just yet, if ever. “Seriously, stop thinking so hard and go back to sleep.”

“I can’t,” he responds, shifting when Blaine’s cold nose presses into his shoulder blade. “I’m awake now.”

“What do you want me to do about it?”

He snorts, twisting himself around to face the other boy. He’s never seen him like this, fluffy hair and bleary delirium. His cheeks are flushed red, his eyes still closed. Briefly, Sebastian wonders if anyone’s ever seen Blaine liked this. 

“You can stop staring at me for starters,” Blaine opens one eye, shining, tired hazel staring at him. “If you really want something to do, you can make yourself useful and go clean downstairs.”

“Nice try, Anderson.”

“No, I’m serious,” he laughs, face still buried in his pillow. “If you do that, I will do something equally as taxing for you.”

“Sounds dangerous.”

“I will make pancakes,” Blaine promises, smiling up at him. “It’s very hard to do when hungover.”

“I wouldn’t know but I believe you.”

Blaine nods, his eyes slowly shutting again. It’s minutes of staring at Blaine, wondering how exactly they got to this point - it wasn’t something he did - until he connects the few remaining dots of last night. 

“Someone should check on Tina.”

*

Apparently, no one needed to check on Tina. She’s clutching a cup of coffee tightly between her hands, head bent over the table. It’s strange to him that she can look so small, bundled up in Blaine’s clothes. She looks… warm. And cozy. And his heart is kind of warmed by the fact that both she and Blaine are so tiny compared to him that they consistently look adorable. 

“You doing okay, Tina?” he asks, pouring himself a mug of coffee and, when Blaine glares at him, pouring a second one. She grumbles something unintelligible into the wooden table. Without thinking, he presses a chaste kiss to the top of her head. Blaine squints at him and he shrugs helplessly. “I’m… drunk?”

“Sure you are.”

Blaine makes pancakes and Sebastian throws way too much plastic away and Tina occasionally comments something about how he clearly knows nothing while remaining seated. Really, it’s nice. To be a part of something calmer, more real than he usually experiences, with two people that he likes. 

“My mom won’t be home for another few hours,” Blaine says eventually, eyes a bit wider than they had been now that he’s eaten something. Tina’s still grumbling uselessly over her coffee and it’s probably best that she didn’t make plans for today if this is how she’s going to be. “We have to clean up but we can do something else too.” 

Tina lifts her head, squinting at them as the light from the kitchen window hits her. She clears her throat, a guttural noise that makes her sound like a dodgy engine. “Can we nap?” 

He doesn’t even bother hiding his laugh.

*

They fall into a pattern he’s not completely aware of at first, coffee dates and study sessions that transform into evenings at the cinema or a dinner because they’re hungry and don’t want to leave one another just yet. 

He’s not sure if he’s the first to notice it or the last. Blaine pretends everything is the same as it always was and, maybe he’s right. But Tina sometimes smiles at him like she knows all of his secrets and sometimes he smiles back like he wants to discover all of hers. 

None of them mention it, content to let the situation control itself until things blow up in their faces - an inevitability that he begins preparing for with each coffee they drink. 

But, even thought he anticipates every possible outcome for whatever they’re doing, he doesn’t expect to be the one left on the outskirts. For Blaine and Tina to tell him over milkshakes and fries that they’re dating. 

“We’re young and we’re figuring ourselves out,” Blaine explains like he wouldn’t get it, his hand entwined with Tina’s on the table between them. “We figured what better time to see if  _ this _ could work than now.” 

“Of course,” he answers, the words barrelling through him before he can even really think them through. “I’m happy for you.” 

Tina smiles at him, almost apologetic but her head is turned slightly towards Blaine like she wants nothing more than to stare at him all day and… Sebastian gets it. He really gets it. 

*

They go on dates, Blaine and Tina do, inviting him along occasionally. It feels a lot like pity, being sidelined and then joining them whenever they let him because he’s incapable of letting go of what either of them mean to him. 

Sometimes, they’ll do things Blaine enjoys. Watch football or go rollerblading. And sometimes they’ll watch a rom-com Tina’s been dying to see or just hang out. He doesn’t really join in on those, happier to lose himself in the old, familiar feel of Scandals and it’s patrons. But sometimes they’ll call him and ask what he wants to do, so earnest, and he can’t turn them down. 

“Since when do you like art?” Blaine asks him when they’re wondering through a new exhibit a town over, Tina flitting from painting to painting with the excitement of a child at Disneyland. 

“I don’t really,” he responds, glaring at a middle-aged women that has the audacity to stick her nose up as she walks past them. “But Tina mentioned it last month and since we’re all going to be busy for the next few weeks, I thought it couldn’t hurt.” 

Blaine doesn’t answer, doesn’t mutter a word. He stops, turning back to where the shorter boy has stopped walking, staring at him like they’ve never met before. Or maybe they have, in some other life, because Blaine believes in things like that. 

“What?” 

Blaine shakes his head, hurrying to Sebastian’s side as Tina goes into the next room. “Who knew you could be so sweet?” 

He sticks his tongue out in retaliation. 

*

“I think something is wrong with Blaine,” is the first thing Tina says to him when she arrives at the Lima Bean. There had been a moment, after Regionals, where he wasn’t sure how they’d take beating him. He shouldn’t have worried. “He’s been weirdly distant and I’m worried.” 

“Why don’t you just ask him about it?” 

“I have,” she moans, stealing half of his cookie like she has any right to. He glares but it’s more out of principal than anything. “He won’t tell me anything.” 

“Then you wait for him to be ready, Tina.” he rolls his eyes, tucking his textbooks back into his bag. It’s not like he’s going to get much else done now. 

“When did you become so wise, Smythe?” 

“I’ve always been wise,” he laughs, draining the last of his coffee so he has an excuse to pay for hers. “It’s why I chose to befriend you and not Berry.” 

*

“This is my brother,” Blaine explains, gesturing to the taller man beside him. “Cooper.”

He nods, feeling the same way he did when he first met Kurt. Like they’re not going to get along. He’s right. 

“You probably recognise me,” Cooper says, lounging back in his chair like it’s a throne specially made for him. It’s not. The leg is wonky and it shows. “I’m pretty famous.” 

“Never even heard of you to be honest.” 

“Have you not been telling your friends about me, Squirt?” He barely resists a shudder at the nickname. It just sounds  _ wrong _ . “Never mind. Is this the boyfriend?” 

Blaine frowns, scratching the back of his neck like he does when he’s uncomfortable. “Ummm no. I don’t have a boyfriend, Coop.” 

“But-“ 

“His girlfriend, Tina, will be here soon,” Sebastian interrupts, almost desperate to prove just how little he cares for Cooper so far. “She had to run an errand first.” 

“Girlfriend? Dad must be over the moon about that one.” 

Blaine clears his throat, like it’s closed itself off at the mention of his father and Sebastian can understand to an extent. Has heard enough about Michael Anderson to have formed his own opinion. And, truth be told, it isn’t tasteful. 

“Yeah,” Blaine croaks in the end, glancing towards the door. He looks up to see Tina coming in, scanning the shop for them. He waves her over.

“Hey,” she mumbles, dropping a kiss to Blaine’s cheek and patting him on the head. It was something she had done whilst hungover and it just kind of stuck after that. “Sorry I’m late.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Blaine smiles, almost entirely forgetting that Cooper is there. “What do you want to drink?” 

“I’ll get it,” he says, standing as soon as Cooper goes to open his mouth. Maybe it’s an excuse. He doesn’t really care. “Do you want a refill, killer?” 

There’s a moment where Tina gets riled up, ready to put Cooper in his place (far away) without making any apologies, and he loves that he can notice it from a distance. She’s full of such fiery passion that he knows gets overshadowed by Rachel Berry. By Blaine, too. But to see her so righteous, it’s really one of his favourite things in the world. 

“A non-fat mocha for Tina,” he places the drink in front of her, already prepped just how she likes it. “And a medium drop for Blaine.” 

He cradled his ginger tea, waiting for Cooper to comment on how he’d been left out. It doesn’t come, surprisingly, but the older man frowns deeply as he stands and almost stomps to the queue. Perhaps Tina was more furious than he thought. 

“Thank you,” Blaine mumbles, squeezing Sebastian’s thigh quickly because that’s what  _ friends _ do. “It means a lot.” 

There’s a lot written between those words, several thank you’s littered in appreciation for doing the bare minimum but he’s always been selfish so he basks in it like he’s actually done everything for praise. It’s just easier that way. 

*

“Kurt didn’t get into NYADA.” 

“And I care why?” 

They’re lying on his bed, side by side. Tina hadn’t been able to hang out with them, a mandatory dinner with her parents that she couldn’t even try and refuse to attend, but they’d gone through with their evening plans regardless. 

“He’s staying in Lima,” Blaine says, fingers trailing on of the lines on his comforter. “I just didn’t expect that I’d have to see him next year as well, y’know?” 

“I don’t know but you’ll be fine,” he answers, pausing the film Blaine had put on in favour of giving this conversation his all. “You’ll have me and Tina still. It’ll be exactly like this year has been and you probably won’t even see him every day because he won’t go to your school still.” 

“I know that.”

“So what are you worried about?” 

“I just…” Blaine begins, pausing like he’s not entirely sure where he’s going with this. What he wants to say. “I just wish he got to have his dream. You may not like him but Kurt deserves a shot at whatever he puts his mind to. I feel bad that he’s not getting that.” 

He almost doesn’t cover up his snort at that. “It’s not your fault he didn’t apply to more than one school.” 

Blaine nods, flopping back on the pillow. “I don’t know what it is. I just want him to be able to show the world what he can offer.” 

“While I’m not overly interested in anything Kurt Hummel has to offer, I am very interested in what you have to offer,” he teases because there’s a clear line between him and Blaine and Tina’s relationship. He won’t cross it despite his teasing and neither will they.

Or, at least, that’s what he assumes. The line blurs when Blaine is suddenly above him, pressing a kiss to his lips like he’s been wanting to do it forever. It lasts just a few seconds, a few glorious seconds where all of his thoughts about the universe come into perspective because this - this is the point of living. But then he’s gone, practically rolling off of Sebastian’s bed and out of his bedroom door. 

He’s at the top of the stairs when Blaine shouts, “I’m sorry,” and the front door slams shut. 

He tries to call but Blaine doesn’t pick up. Tina phones him but he’s not ready to lose her either so he just lets it go to voicemail. 

*

He refuses to go to the Lima Bean following that, the worry that he might bump into Blaine or Tina lingering in the back of his mind until he’s not sure he can breathe. There’s a small cafe near Dalton, family owned, and he assumes that he’ll be safer there. 

Apparently, it’s easier than he thought to forget that Blaine was once a warbler as well. 

“I thought I’d find you here.” 

He looks up, meets Blaine’s gaze first and then Tina’s. She doesn’t look angry or upset, but he knows her and she can’t just be fine with her boyfriend kissing someone else on a whim. 

They take a seat before he can get his body to catch up to his mind, still sitting as close as they used to and he wonders, briefly, if Blaine hasn’t told Tina what happened at all. 

“Sebastian,” Tina says, short and clipped. Almost angry. “Would you say something?” 

“Hi?” 

She rolls her eyes, crossing her arms against her chest. “We need to talk.” 

He feels himself nod, feels every emotion course through his veins in overdrive. If he spontaneously combusts, maybe he won’t have to have this conversation at all. 

“I’m sorry,” Blaine tells him, genuine. “What I did wasn’t okay. You didn't know the full story and you probably assumed the worst of me.” 

“I-“

“Let us explain,” Tina pats his arm gently. It just leaves him more confused than ever. “Maybe then things will make sense.” 

He doesn’t answer but they seem to read something in his body language that tells them to go ahead. 

“A couple months ago, we sat down and we had a serious discussion about where we stood with each other,” Blaine begins, tapping his fingers on the tabletop as Tina strokes his arm as if to comfort him. “We like each other, sure, but something was always kind of missing after we made things official. There was this chunk of how our relationship was fundamentally supposed to work that didn’t.” 

“It took a lot of searching,” Tina continues, smiling softly at him. If this is what it’s like to be pitied, he doesn’t want it. Where can he return it? “And then it clicked. The reason Blaine and I worked in the beginning was you. Not to put pressure on you by saying that but you were a massive part of our original dynamic. When we realised that, we figured there was only one way to test it.” 

“One of you had to kiss me,” he fills in, a chuckle sticking in the back of his throat. He doesn’t know where exactly they’re going with this but he can’t tell if he hates it or not. “That didn’t exactly work out the way you expected, did it?” 

Blaine shrugs, guilt spread across his features and he instantly wants to take it back. “It worked perfectly, actually.” 

He’s back to being completely lost, the situation so confusing that he’s sure he has no hope of keeping up at this point. 

“What we’re saying is that you’re the part of us that makes the romance work,” Tina take over, saving them all. “You’re the spark. The flame that keeps us burning. We can’t give that up.” 

“I… I have no idea what you’re talking about, Tina.” 

“We both want to date you.” 

He blinks, every thought halting until all that’s left is ringing. “Huh?”

“The three of us,” Tina points at each of them in turn, impatience getting the best of her. “Could date. If you want that.” 

He gulps, wondering whether saying yes immediately would be the stupidest decision he ever made. “Can I think about it?” 

“Fine.” 

*

He doesn’t think about it much because he knows the answer. But it’s fun to keep them both waiting, repay the favour so to speak, but it’s eventually too much effort for him to hold it in any longer.

He places Tina’s mocha down on the table in the Lima Bean, handing Blaine his when he makes grabby hands. They stare at him, waiting for the answer he really hopes they want from him. 

It takes thirty seven seconds for him to crack. 

“If the offers still stands, I really want to date you both.” 

The last word is barely out of his mouth before Tina is racing around the table to sit with him. Or, rather, on him. 

He’ll never admit that the warmth in his heart actually feels  _ really _ good. He has a reputation to uphold after all. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> I’m at love-that-we-were-in on tumblr.


End file.
